Free range Egg Question

"Russ Thompson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

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We raise chickens on our farm. They are truely "free range" They are penned at night in a portable
coop for their own protection. Early in the morning the door to the coop is opened and the chicken
spend the day wandering about the pasture...

I would like to get my eggs from this kind of a farm. Where can I get information on local
(Pennsylvania) suppliers?

"Russ Thompson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

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The fate of male calves on dairy farms is also a concern. -Rubystars

The vast majority of dairy bull calves end up being raised for beef, not veal. For some breeds of
dairy cows like Jerseys (the breed of cow we

have)

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no bull calves end up as veal. Most of our bull calves are sold in groups of 2 or 3 to people who

wish

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to raise them for their own eating. Most of these people use rotational grazing to rais these
calves. A small number are raised as breeding

bulls.

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Kala Thompson Farmer Richland Center, Wi

Ok thanks for the info!

-Rubystars

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I always learn more from farmers than philosophers (seriously.)

What happens to the bull calves if they don't become veal?

*** They are raised as beef. Most are rasied on pasture as "stockers" until 2 - 4 months before
slaughter then they are put into feed lots. Most are slaughtered at 14 or so month of age. Not all
are raised this way. Some are raised on pasture only and sold as "grass fed" beef. Some are put into
a feed lot much sooner. Some (about 20%) are raised to 4 months and slaughtered as veal, though
fewer and fewer are raised as veal every year. All this applies to holsteins witch make up 94% of
the dairy cattle in the USA. Other breeds like jerseys (witch we have) are very rarely used as veal
and never in comercial veal operations. That vast majority of jersey bull calves are raised as grass
fed beef. Jerseys are poor converters of grain to beef and so are not often used in feed lots. They
are also famous for producing high qualiety beef on grass alone. Most people who raise jersey bull
calves do so for their own eating or for direct marketing.

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Why do the chickens...seriously, why do they return to the coop?

*** That's their "home". When we have new chickens we lock them up in the coop for a week or so and
from then on they will always return at night. There are roosts and nesting boxes in the coop for
them and they seem to know that they are safe there.

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they also fed there to condition that response?

*** They are fed and watered in the coop but the feed we provide is only a small part of thier
diet, about 15% of their total diet by weight. If there is no feed in the coop they will come back
to it anyway.

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How do you keep track of which roosters to keep?

*** We see these chickens twice a day every day of the year. I know who is who. We usually keep a
rooster until he gets to old and eat his sons. Sometimes we can eat the older roosters and hen but
usually if they get to old to get around well they will become lunch for a hawk. Our dog protects
them from all other predators but can't do anything about the hawks.

Kala Thompson Farmer Richland Center, Wi USA

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"Xyzzy" <[email hidden]> wrote

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I would like to get my eggs from this kind of a farm. Where can I get information on local
(Pennsylvania) suppliers?

eatwild.comeatwild.comOpen ↗

Skip & Christy Hensler THE ROCK GARDEN Newport, WA povn.comrockOpen ↗

Rat & Swan said:

[email hidden] wrote:

<snip>

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. Let's go on with it a bit to something I never see the "ARAs" point out, but it's a huge factor
to me: sometimes one or more of the hens will single out and beat on another hen.

<snip>

You "never see" it because you spend all your time with your head up your ass. It's one of the
factors AR literature points out every time battery egg production is mentioned -- by either ARAs
or professional journals for battery egg producers. Why do you think chickens are debeaked (have
the tips of their beaks burned off )? So they won't kill other chickens in the same cage by pecking
them to death. The people who do it even say that is why they do it. In any social species, when
the lowest-rank animals can't escape from higher-rank animals (i.e. demonstrate submission
properly)they may end up badly hurt or killed.

Rat

Show me an example of "ARAs" describing the conditions that make a hen afraid to pull her head
out of a corner. How do you think this might relate to the idea of their feet growing into the
wire floor (or whatever)?

Rat & Swan said:

[email hidden] wrote:

<snip>

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. Let's go on with it a bit to something I never see the "ARAs" point out, but it's a huge factor
to me: sometimes one or more of the hens will single out and beat on another hen.

<snip>

You "never see" it because you spend all your time with your head up your ass.

What a stupid thing to write. And a lie too! Until now I had a bit more respect for you than for
the Gonad, but apparently you're all pretty much the same.

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It's one of the factors AR literature points out every time battery egg production is mentioned

I feel it's safe to say that you can't produce a single example of "ARAs" referring to what I
referred to--and which you snipped-- which is just another form of dishonesty.

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-- by either ARAs or professional journals for battery egg producers. Why do you think chickens are
debeaked (have the tips of their beaks burned off )? So they won't kill other chickens in the same
cage by pecking them to death.

Do you believe it prevents chickens from killing each other? If so, how exactly do you think
it does so?

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The people who do it even say that is why they do it. In any social species, when the lowest-rank
animals can't escape from higher-rank animals (i.e. demonstrate submission properly)they may end up
badly hurt or killed.

Rat

Miller said:

<[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

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On Sat, 20 Dec 2003 20:33:20 -0500, "Miller"

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It just blows my mind how hot certain people get over this particular

issue.

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Scott

Over which particular issue? If you mean cage free eggs in particular, think about this
situation: There are four hens in a cage that is so low they can't flap their wings. They
don't have much room to move around at all. They are on wire mesh, so they can't scratch or
take a dust bath. If you were in such a position you might think it was overly restrictive. I
think it is. Let's go on with it a bit to something I never see the "ARAs" point out, but
it's a huge factor to me: sometimes one or more of the hens will single out and beat on
another hen. Sometimes the abused hen will pull her head out of the corner, and head toward
another part of the cage...one of the abusers will beat on her and send her another direction
...another abuser will beat on her over there...she will try to get away from them but can't,
so will eventually burry her head in a corner again to keep it from getting beaten on. Every
time she pulls her head out she gets beaten on, and she lives in fear all of the time. If you
just don't care about things like that, then that's just the type of person you are and
you're not likely to ever understand why any people would consider it significant. Do you
think there are any animal related situations that people should get hot about? If so, which
ones?

I mean, go out and do something about it then, for crissakes! Do you think ranting on internet
newsgroups about anything ever does any good?

Scott

Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn't. Some animals benefit from being raised for food. Some
of them don't.

Can you answer my questions now?

Most are

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slaughtered at 14 or so month of age.

That should read "24 month of age" Sorry about that.

Kala

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"The Rock Garden" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

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"Xyzzy" <[email hidden]> wrote

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I would like to get my eggs from this kind of a farm. Where can I get information on local
(Pennsylvania) suppliers?

eatwild.comeatwild.comOpen ↗

Nice!

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Skip & Christy Hensler THE ROCK GARDEN Newport, WA povn.comrockOpen ↗